Here's what was added in the Lord of the Rings extended additions. Perhaps the biggest reason why there's so much extra content in the extended editions is because each film is at least three hours long - and that's without the deleted material. They also let viewers glimpse moments from the books that were ultimately determined unnecessary for the live-action version of the story. Peter Jackson, who directed all three Lord of the Rings films, has stated his preference for the theatrical versions, since the extended editions are mostly put together for the benefit of fans who want to see everything excised from the final cut. Related: The REAL Reason The Hobbit Was Made Three Movies but due to the sheer number of individuals featured in the trilogy, several don't get their fair share of screen time in the theatrical cuts - especially those whose stories aren't central to the plot. In the extended editions, however, many of these short-changed characters finally get their due. Each is loaded with characters from various factions in Middle-earth. The Lord of the Rings movies are known for their massive, star-studded casts. Sometimes, the changes simply provide an extra line of dialogue in other situations an unseen conversation introduces a whole new layer to a certain character.

The new footage consists of deleted scenes, as well as longer versions of sequences already in the movies. These bumper editions add tons of new footage to all three movies, elevating the trilogy's runtime from 9 hours and 3 minutes to a whopping 11 hours and 36 minutes. One year after the theatrical cut of each Lord of the Rings movie, an extended version would be released on home video media. Plenty of additional footage was added in the Lord of the Rings extended editions, much of which answers lingering questions the theatrical trilogy didn't.

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